Çatalhöyük comes Home

Abstract

The archaeological site of Neolithic Çatalhöyük, on the Anatolian plain in Central Turkey, has been attracting attention since its initial excavation in the 1960s, directed by James Mellaart. Excavation was restarted in 1993, with a new Research Project, directed by Ian Hodder. The archaeology at Çatalhöyük provides a rich record of the minutiae of the daily life of this early farming community which also produced exceptional architecture and art for the period, making it one of the most important archaeological sites in the world. This article presents an overview of the site and the work undertaken to date, weaving in the story of the two project directors and their connetion with the UCL Institute of Archaeology.